If you’ve spent too much time with a Maine Coon or looked at pictures of Maine Coons on the internet, you’ve probably wondered why Maine Coons look like humans?
Compared to most cat breeds, the Maine Coon can be extremely human in their face, which can be both charming and a little disconcerting! Find out why it’s…
Some Maine Coon cat breeders selectively breed their Maine Coons to be more human-like. They do this to make their Maine Coons more visually pleasing to them. Other Maine Coon breeders try to breed kittens with fluffier coats, or unique and interesting shapes and sizes.
So today we’re going to look at why Maine Coons look so human-like, what that means to them as a breed, and how they compare to humans in terms of appearance and size.
Be sure to read until the end of the article, to see some hilarious examples of Maine Coons that look exactly like people, so much so that you might even wonder if the pictures are real.
Why do Maine Coons look like humans?
The Maine Coon is the largest and longest-lived domesticated cat breed in the world.
They were adopted by humans hundreds of years ago and have since grown into a fierce companion who loves to spend all their time with their family.
Some say Maine Coon cats love us so much they’ve even started to look like us! And to be honest, these people aren’t entirely wrong!
There are several reasons why Maine Coons can look like humans:
Selective breeding
The main reason some Maine Coons have human faces is because Maine Coons have been selectively bred over the years.
It happens to all breeds of cats and all species of pets. We breed our pets for the characteristics we like or want.
However, this does not explain why Maine Coons, more than any other cat breed, have become human in appearance.
Is it due to the intentional breeding of Maine Coons to look like people? Some breeders try to do this, but most don’t.
It’s probably just a coincidence that the Maine Coons we think are the “cutest” also look the most like people. And that’s why the breed developed to be so human-like as a breed.
Cut
The Maine Coon’s size is thought to be partly responsible for why we think it looks so human-like.
Their heads are bigger, their ears are bigger, and their faces are bigger and rounder, which helps them look more like us.
When you compare a Maine Coon to other smaller cats, naturally people think that Maine Coons look the most like us.
Intelligence
You could say that one of the main reasons Maine Coons look like humans is that they are so intelligent and you can sense/feel/see that intelligence behind their eyes.
There is a level of understanding and comprehension in your Maine Coon eyes when you look at them and talk to them, compared to other cats, which could potentially make them look a lot more human-like (source 1,2,3).
Maine Coon Human Face Examples
Some Maine Coons resemble humans. While others look almost oddly human.
Here are some cool examples of Maine Coons with a human face, which you might even recognize:
Tatyana Rastorgueva
Tatyana is well known for raising the most humane Maine Coons in the world.
She received a lot of press attention over her uniquely human-looking Maine Coons.
In Tatyana’s case, these Maine Coons were selectively bred by choosing the most humane Maine Coon pairs and breeding them together.
She’s been doing this for generations.
Look more closely here.
Valkyrie
Valkyrie is one of the most popular and famous Maine Coons with a human face.
You can learn more about Valkyrie, the human Maine Coon lookalike here or find her on Instagram quite easily.
Nirvana
Nirvana is a popular black Maine Coon on TikTok.
This Maine Coon cat has a pretty stern human face.
Her owner, and Nirvana’s page owner, often shares tons of Maine Coon content, including human-looking kittens.
The Maine Coon looks like an actor
Some Maine Coons look like humans! This is now well established.
So it’s only natural that we strive to find Maine Coons that look like famous actors, right?
So here’s a guy who looks more like a Maine Coon than some Maine Coons look!
The actors name is Ron Perlman. Looked here.
Ron is well aware that he particularly resembles the Maine Coon.
He was once famous for being an actor, but now he’s also famous for looking like a Maine Coon!
Does he care, is he happy or offended?
We really hope Ron isn’t offended that people think he looks like a Maine Coon. Instead, we hope he’s amused by the fact!
It’s not an insult to be compared to the amazing Maine Coon cat breed, is it?!
Maine Coons are amazing and he should be happy he is associated with them. But it would be understandable if it wasn’t!
Cat with human face Mythology
What breed of cat has a human face?
Sure, the Maine Coon, but the Japanese Bakeneko is a magical cat that can transform into human form and speak human words too.
Can the Maine Coon do this?
No, at least they haven’t shared that power with us yet!
A Bakeneko is a magical supernatural cat that has immense power and is incredibly vindictive against people.
Bakeneko is often created when cats are abused or brutally killed by humans.
These cats then return as the Bakeneko and curse the person who harmed them. Which is right.
Human-looking cat breeds
The Maine Coon isn’t the only cat breed that looks like a human.
The simple question “what breed of cat has a human face” is fine, but the answer doesn’t always explain why these cats look so human-like.
If you were to casually scroll past most of these cats on social media, you wouldn’t even be able to contemplate their human facial features unless someone pointed them out to you.
- Maine Coons: Head shape, eyes, smart looking, and bred to look like humans in some cases.
- Siamese: The shape of their face and jaw as well as the position of their eyes.
- norwegian forest cat: Similar to the Maine Coon, the shape of their face and eyes as well as increased intelligence.
- British Shorthair: Maybe this one is overkill, but their big, very rounded heads can make them look like humans.
Reasons People Love Human-Faced Maine Coons
Human-faced Maine Coons are quite an odd concept that you might think would be quite unnerving.
But people love them!
In our opinion, it’s quite strange but there is something charming about a Maine Coon with a human face, which people seem to appreciate.
Here are a few reasons why people might like human-faced Maine Coons:
- Unique: They are unique and interesting to look at and quite unusual compared to other cat breeds which could make them very popular.
- Humanity: Their humanity is cute and makes them look almost like babies on their faces, which is very appealing to many people.
- More connected: Some people relate more to human-faced Maine Coons because they look more like their owners.
- Funny: It’s funny to have a cat that looks like a fluffy little person. How can you not like this?
Maine Coon cat compared to humans
Maine Coons may look like people, but they can’t quite measure up to our height yet.
Sure, Maine Coons are pretty big, but they’re nowhere near adult size!
Take a look at the table below to see why:
| The measurement | Maine Negro Cut |
Medium American Man |
|---|---|---|
| lester | 8 to 25 pounds | 199 pounds |
| Length | Up to 40 inches |
N / A |
| Height | 15 inch |
69 inch |
What breed of cat sits like a human
The Scottish Fold cat likes to sit like a human in an odd upright position with its paws spread out in front of it.
It almost looks like they are sitting in an armchair in front of the fire, enjoying a glass of wine and a good book!
It is often called the Budha position and believed to be purely a thing of comfort.
Some cats like to sit like people. Did they learn it from us? Maybe.
What does a Maine Coon cat look like
Many people believe that the norwegian forest cat looks almost identical to the Maine Coon.
There is probably a common ancestor somewhere in their common past.
These two large cat breeds look very similar and are both exceptionally large and lovable cats. But, and this may be a bit biased, the Maine Coon is cuter. Sorry forest cat!
Conclusion
So why do Maine Coons look like humans?
It’s a mix of luck/luck, selective breeding and trickery.
As people, we try to find patterns and shapes in everything we look at. It’s just human nature.
And while some Maine Coons certainly look human-like, most aren’t particularly.
It’s fun trying to see the human features in your Maine Coons face.
But if the process were reversed, how many people’s faces would you say resemble the Maine Coon? Probably not very many.
And if someone looks a bit like the Maine Coon, you probably shouldn’t tell them to their face! Or maybe you should, they might take it as a compliment!
Thanks for reading and I hope you found this as fun to read as it was to write.
related questions
Most Human-Friendly Cat Breed
Probably the most human-friendly cat breed is the Maine Coon, although it could also be the Ragdoll, Siamese and Scottish Fold.
Cat With A Human Face Meme
Some cats look like they have human faces, and some cats have human faces forced upon them. Is sticking Nick Cage’s face on a cat nerd humor? No, but who cares.
